Living A Lie
by WastelandRose13
Summary: FANFICTION ORIGINALLY WRITTEN BY dhampir After Naruto is almost killed Sasuke decides to leave with him for three years...
1. Chapter 1

Note* This is not an original work, this is a reposting post translation of the original version.

Original Author: dhampir

(none of the characters, locations, or plot lines belong to me in any way)

Chapter One

Sasuke sighed softly as he started walking from home to the bridge where his team still met every day. He paused a little to enjoy the scent and the sounds and the scenery of autumn. He took a deep breath and felt the cool air. He looked towards the festival, which was happening in the distance and sighed again, then continued towards the bridge. He hated all the festivals in Konoha, they only brought him troubles because the girls and all their stupid gifts; but he hated today even more. He was forced to attend this festival land he cursed Kakashi for it.

-Flash Back-

_I want you three to meet me here in two days at 9am sharp. You all are off tomorrow because I have to go on a mission for the Hokage, but I hope to see you all the next day." He announced with a special look directed at Sasuke and Naruto. He knew that Sasuke had intended to practice for the whole day instead of attending the festival with everyone and_ _Naruto just wanted to avoid all contact with everyone that day._

"_Whatever." Sasuke shrugged nonchalantly, his expression showing no emotion at all even though he was quite annoyed. He knew why Kakashi was doing this. They all performed well on their missions, but the group's patience for each other outside of missions was non-existent._

_Naruto didn't react, instead he was staring at the stream, deep in thought._

"_But Kakashi-sensei, we don't have any missions that day." Sakura said when Naruto didn't speak. Her plan to be alone with Sasuke that day was ruined._

_The silver haired Jounin grinned behind his mask. "Let's just say that I want to reward the three of you with a fun day for all your hard work."_

_Sasuke snorted. "What's fun about this stupid festival? I'd rather train."_

_The teacher's smile widened. "Ah, but if you want to learn from me and get ahead of Jounin exam, then you'll come, Sasuke. Remember, you need a teacher to nominate you. Oh, and meet me here tomorrow morning. I have something for you to do, Sasuke." Then he disappeared, leaving the three students on the bridge._

_Sakura immediately clung to Sasuke, took his hand and smiled at him. "Isn't this fun Sasuke-kun? We'll be able to spend the whole day together!"_

_Sasuke yanked his hand away from Sakura, now impatient and irritated, he immediately turned around to leave. "No, it's not fun." He tensed up, waiting for the familiar saying, 'That cold bastard! How could you treat Sakura-chan like that?' but that didn't happen. Sasuke paused, hiding his surprise and worry, glancing over his shoulder at his blonde-haired teammate. "Naruto?"_

_The blue eyes came immediately back to life. "Huh?" He looked around in confusion and turned to Sasuke and Sakura. "Oh, yeah…see you guys tomorrow...bye." He said, hesitantly waving and turning to run towards his apartment._

_Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the blonde boy's strange attitude and the way he tried to stay as far away from the villagers as possible. "What happened to that idiot?" He muttered before turning away._

-End Flash Back-

Sasuke frowned and thought to himself. Naruto has been acting strange for the past two days. Oh, he's still very loud, obnoxious and still an idiot, but there seems to be something very unusual. He doesn't make jokes, doesn't get angry at Sasuke's taunts and doesn't even touch ramen.

But what worries Sasuke the most is that Naruto doesn't smile anymore. It seems that something serious happened. Even Kakashi, who always has himself immersed in his book has realized this very unnatural change. Surprisingly, no one else noticed Naruto's change in the past few days. Even Sakura hasn't realized it yet, although she has felt quite relieved about his silence. Sasuke though again and realized that he hadn't seen the blonde yesterday, even once even though he went around the village looking for him, naturally at Kakashi's request. He didn't' understand how a ninja so loud and, quite frankly, so annoying could disappear without a trace for a whole day. He continued to search, hoping Sakura and Ino wouldn't see him and drag him to hang out with them.

Sasuke closed his eyes and leaned against the bridge as usual, the image of the blonde boy flashed through h minds. He admitted that he was worried about the idiot, he was the only person he cared about and he had to admit that the blonde boy had a great influence on his life. But he would never confess or say that. He opened his eyes, thought silently about where the blonde boy might be and stared intently as a boy who had just walked across the bridge. He was certain that he had never seen this shinobi before, even though the headband that was tied around his arm indicated that belonged to Konoha. Sasuke was startled when he realized that the blonde boy in black suit was Naruto. Sasuke had never seen him wear such dark clothes or give off such a sad aura.

Sasuke hesitated for a few seconds before following Naruto toward Mount Hokage. He silently watched as Naruto slowly climbed the cliff without any problems unlike when the team was training. Sasuke followed suite and reached the summit of the fourth Hokage ten minutes after Naruto. From the agility and ease with which he had seen him climb, Sasuke was sure the Naruto had come to this place often.

Sasuke quietly approached and was surprised when Naruto said "This place is so quiet, isn't it Sasuke? " Naruto said softly, his arms wrapped around his knees and eyes on village below. Sasuke swore he must have seen Naruto shiver even though the weather was quite warm.

Sasuke was sure he had walked very gently and stayed out of sight, but Naruto knew who he was right away. "How do you know it's me?" He asked, also very softly.

"I recognized your chakra."

"What are you doing here, Dobe? We have to meet with Kakashi and Sakura today." Sasuke spoke coldly, sitting down next to the blonde.

Naruto turned to look at him, shivered once more and smiled. "I'm an idiot, aren't I?"

Sasuke was surprised by a smile overwhelmed by sadness. "What's wrong?" He asked, eyes still not moving from the blonde boy. "You've been acting strange for two days now."

Astonishment appeared in Naruto's eyes. "You ... noticed that?"

"Of course I noticed it. Why wouldn't I?" Sasuke interrupted, not sure why he felt angry and annoyed when he saw Naruto's expression. He only knew that he could feel himself starting to get very angry. Didn't Naruto consider him a friend? Of course he had to realize when his best friend was acting strange. "You didn't smile ..." He said, his voice mild and soft.

"I didn't think anyone would notice or care ..."

Sasuke almost didn't hear the end of the sentence because it was like a whisper he could barely hear. Without thinking he hit Naruto's head. "Why do you think no one will notice or care? You are an idiot. "

That eerie smile widened again, but Naruto didn't shout or argue. He just smiled and continued to look towards the village. "Yeah, that's right. I'm an idiot, a big idiot of the village, a child who's hated and doesn't know anything...The monster." he added in silence and lowered his eyes. Sasuke felt cold once again, and Naruto continued. "But you know what, Sasuke? I'm tired of that already. Do you know how much energy it takes to pretend that you're always happy and full of life when you feel lonely and empty? I had to put in a lot of effort to play that I was always full of life, every time I came home in the evenings and immediately collapsed on the bed. Too tired to be able to do anything other than sleep ... "

"Naruto ..."

But he interrupted Sasuke, not wanting to receive any pity or insults that he thought might happen. "Look, it's not like I don't appreciate seeing you here, Sasuke. I'm happy to see you. But ... why are you here?" He looked at Sasuke again. "I'm just an idiot, no one cares, and I don't need any kind of special treatment."

Sasuke clenched his fist to punch Naruto but stopped when Naruto flinched. "What the hell are you saying? Of course you deserve to be treated with kindness and what makes you think that you are not important? You are my teammate, and that is important to me. "

"For ... you?" He whispered, surprised.

"Oh, Dobe. Sometimes you're really an idiot. Yes, you're very important to me!" Sasuke said gruffly, not wanting to admit it at all.

The next thing he knew, he was being pulled to the ground by the blonde boy and hugged tightly. "Nobody ..." Naruto paused, tears streaming down his cheeks. "No one has ever told me that before." Only Iruka-sensei said he was worried about me, but not that I was important to him. "

Sasuke couldn't help but smile, but he quickly pushed Naruto away from him. "Dobe."

At first Naruto felt a little uncomfortable but when he saw Sasuke's teasing glare, he scratched his head and laughed like before. "Yup, that's me." But again, his smile was full of sorrow and Sasuke didn't know why.

"Naruto, what's making you so nervous? "

The blonde boy immediately regained his composure, continued to look towards Konoha and sat down on the cliff again." Why are you concerned about that? "

Sasuke sighed. "Didn't we just talk about this all over? "

"But why should you care about me? I don't see anything that makes people care about me..."

" Why do you keep saying that? "

"Because ..." He turned and buried his face in his knees. "I'm a monster, that's why."

Once again, anger returned to Sasuke and he clenched his hands into fists. "Who the hell said that to you? Is that why you're acting so strange, Naruto? Because someone told you that you are a monster? "

"... Partially ..."

"Dobe!" Sasuke yelled, "The Naruto I know would never let something like that bother him because it's not true. He wouldn't care what anyone else says about him. "

"But that's the Naruto you know." He slowly said, "Not me. I hide me, Sasuke. I have always concealed everything. No one can ever see the person you see now because I never let them see me, the true me. Because I am a monster. "

"So… everything up until now was just an act? "

"All of it." He laughed. "Who could believe that I understand everything everyone says. That I could control chakra perfectly, that I had no difficulty with the Jutsu techniques we were taught and that I knew all the village's work better than the Hokage them self. I'm not as stupid as I pretend, I know when I stepped into the traps Kakashi-sensei set. I also know when I made a joke of myself when I was talking loudly and carelessly...but it was just a mask that I wore and I had to hold onto it, no matter how tired I was...I don't like Ramen at all, I just eat it because it's cheap and because no one will look at me when I eat with my face down." He sighed, put his head on his hands and turned to look at Sasuke. "I'm living in a lie, Sasuke."

"So as you said, were all our fights an act, Naruto? For you, everything we've ever done is false?"

" No!" He suddenly raised his head, shaking it to both sides. "No… the only truth in my life is to be your opponent and when we fight, even though I wear a stupid mask, I still fight you with everything I can. "

Sasuke continued to sit next to Naruto, closer this time, but Naruto shifted away from him. Sasuke sighed. "I'm glad to know that. I'd beat you into the ground if you said it was all an act. "

Naruto gasped in surprise. "That's not ... Are you joking?" "

Sasuke screamed and lightly punched Naruto on the shoulder. "Are you trying to sidestep another topic? "

"Kh ... No!" But the smile on his face said it all. He just barely dodged Sasuke's next punch and had to jump back before being pinned by him. Sasuke immediately moved behind the blonde and punched him in the side, sending him flying across the ground. But Naruto immediately got out of that situation and grinned at Sasuke before returning to attack him.

An hour later, the fight ended with Sasuke securing Naruto beneath him with the usual half-smile on his lips, but now that smirk didn't mean the same mocking or coldness as usual. Naruto tried to figure out what was behind that smirk as it turned into a smile. And before he could ask why Sasuke had started tickling him. Laughter came from the blonde boy until tears welled up and Naruto began to beg Sasuke to spare him.

Only when Naruto began to gasp did Sasuke stop. But he did not leave his position above Naruto. Instead he smiled and waited until Naruto could breathe and speak normally. "It's good to see you smiling again, Naruto."

"Sasuke ..." Naruto whispered, his body tense underneath. Sasuke

"Huh?" He asked, leaning closer to hear.

"Thank you."

Sasuke immediately sat up, feeling his cheeks reddening.

Sasuke moved off Naruto. "Since you're here, Sasuke. You're the only one who thinks and worries about me if anything happens ... people just leave me alone and never really care about asking me. "

"Naruto…?" He stopped, unsure. Unsure about what he wanted to ask. The blonde boy was beginning to continue acting strangely and froze after Sasuke's touch.

"Yeah?" Naruto asked, raising his head curiously. What could make the great Sasuke hesitant?

Sasuke let out a sigh, Naruto started to return to his former Sasuke wasn't so physically close to him, and he definitely had to say it. "Now that I'm 18 and you're 17, I've known you for five years as a partner, an opponent and a friend but ..." He stopped again, looking at Naruto who continued looking curiously at him, not knowing anything about what could possibly be worrying Sasuke. He was annoyed at not knowing anything about his partner, not even a small thing. "But Naruto, I don't know anything about you." He finally said it, his eyes on the blonde boy.

Naruto looked away, throwing an unintentional stone. "Sure you know me. I'm loud, I like Ramen. I always wear orange for some reason, I ..."

"Dobe! Stop feigning ignorance and listen." Sasuke grabbed his shoulder and forced Naruto to look at his face. "I want to know about you. Not Naruto Uzumaki the village idiot but you. No lies, no masks and no hiding. "

Naruto was a little confused by the weight of Sasuke's words and took a weak breath. "But ... I can't do that."

"Why? "

"Because...You'll hate me," he said, crying again. "I don't want to lose my only friend, and if you know me, you'll hate me and leave me alone."

"Let me decide that." Sasuke said softly.

"But everyone is like that! Everyone hates me and wishes I were dead! "

"Not everyone hates you. There's Sakura, Kakashi-sensei…"

"They hate me," he whispered. "Sakura only sees you and thinks of me as an annoyance and Kakashi-sensei has always been interested only in you, not thinking about me. If he was forced to choose between the two, he will choose you without thinking ... Even Iruka-sensei believes that I am a burden." Tears started to fall down and he leaned forward until his forehead touched Sasuke's chest, his body trembling with sobs.

"Naruto. I promise you I won't hate you. I just want to know about you."

"Why?"

"Listen to me, Dobe." He said, sheepishly pulling the blonde boy close and hugging him in comfort. "You're very important to me." And he was surprised when Naruto tensed up in his arms and he suddenly realized that his body was trembling not because of crying but because he was so close to him. He was about to ask what happened when Naruto spoke up.

"I am the Nine Tailed Fox, Kyuubi." He said quietly after a pause. "Yondaime sealed it into my body and paid for it with his life."

It was strange because Sasuke found himself not too surprised by the blonde's words. He knew there must be some reason for the villagers' hatred for Naruto, but he didn't think about it. Still, he wasn't surprised. "Naruto ... I'm sorry." He whispered, pulling the small boy closer and not caring about Naruto's silence. "But I don't care about that. That monster might be sealed within you, but that doesn't mean you're a monster too. "

Naruto crouched down, took a few steps back and used suspicious eyes to look at Sasuke. "You mean you still want to be with me?"

He smiled, looking towards Konoha village again. Sometimes the blonde boy is really stupid. "That's right, Dobe. I still want to be with you. "

"Thank you Sasuke, no one has ever ..." He stopped, snorted and smiled when his tears were dry.

Sasuke couldn't help but smile. Reaching into his pocket, he turned away, gliding a reassuring hand over his teammate's shoulder. "Let's go, Dobe. We're late. "

Naruto smiled, scratching his head with his hand. "Sorry."

"Hn, it's about time to meet Kakashi-sensei, they must be waiting for us. If we don't hurry, they'll think we disappeared." He started climbing down the cliffs with Naruto following him. The two of them moved silently and arrived at the bridge 10 minutes later. As they approached the bridge, Sasuke caught a glimpse and saw Naruto smiling, a real smile, not a mask. There was something that Naruto was hiding from him and Sasuke couldn't stop thinking about his strange behavior. Not just the new clothes or manners, but the way Naruto was scared every time he approached him. Or when he touched the blonde, he tensed up and his eyes wandered around nervously and he could not help but see his skin pale every time they touched. Something was wrong.

"Oh, Sasuke!" He smiled. "What do you want to know about me?"  
His ebony-black eyes stared into his blue eyes as Sasuke asked, "How about we start with your birthday, Dobe?" He asked, smiling at the blonde boy who started frowning at the name. Honestly, that question had bothered him all these hours. He had known the blond boy for the past five years but never knew his birthday. People don't organize it like they did for his birthday, Sakura or even Kakashi. Never had he heard the blonde boy mention his birthday over the years and that made Sasuke uncomfortable. He was remembering that Naruto always had gifts for everyone on their birthdays. But on the contrary, no one has ever done that to him.

Naruto smiled and whispered just enough for Sasuke to hear "Today." Before running to the bridge to greet an angry Sakura and a furious Kakashi.

**END CHAPTER ONE**


	2. Chapter 2

Sasuke walked beside Kakashi and Sakura, watching Naruto contemplate everything in the Festival with a feigned curiosity, Sasuke alone knew it. Both Sakura and Kakashi were smiling sweetly at Naruto as if he were an idiot. Sakura was still clinging to his hand, though it made Sasuke feel uncomfortable, but he still couldn't escape. Sasuke was too preoccupied with Naruto instead of trying to peel her off himself. She was still wearing her normal ninja outfit, but her hair was tied up and she had put on some lip gloss.

"Sakura, can you talk to Naruto for a while?" Sasuke suddenly asked, not taking his eyes off the blonde. He turned to shift his gaze towards the pink-haired girl beside him who was looking at him curiously. "I want to talk to Kakashi-sensei."

"Oh, okay Sasuke-kun ..." She said softly and chased after Naruto shouting "Come back here, Baka!"

Kakashi turned to look at Sasuke with curious eyes. "Is there something important we need to discuss that you have to let Sakura chase Naruto?" He knew that nothing good would happen when letting an angry Sakura go with Naruto.

Sasuke was silent for a moment, thinking if he was right when he said what he was about to ask. "What do you know about Naruto?"

"About Naruto?" The silver-haired teacher frowned.

"What does he like or hate? Where does he live? What has happened to him in the past? What kind of person is he? _When is his birthday?" _Sasuke asked, emphasizing the last sentence. He turned around to face his teacher and looked directly into the eyes of the Jounin.

"Why are you asking all of a sudden, Sasuke?"

He bent down. "Why don't you know any of that?" He said softly, "I can see that you don't know from your voice. I know all the things I need to know about you and Sakura, but about the person who kept us together, we don't know anything at all."

"Naruto kept us together?" Kakashi smiled. "I thought you would say that he is separating us, Sasuke?"

"Is that what you think?" He yelled and Kakashi stopped smiling, startled by the emotion emanating from the black-haired boy. He looked down apologetically and said, "Have you always been like that?" When he looked into the teacher's eyes again, his pupils narrowed and filled with emotion. "The only reason why I haven't strangled Sakura is because of Naruto and the only reason I'm here is because of him. I want to be here. Or did you forget that I ran away and followed the damn snake Orochimaru and Naruto was the only one who could bring me back. How can you not know anything about your student, Kakashi? "

The Jounin was completely surprised, he had never seen Sasuke so angry or ... was he protecting Naruto? Kakashi looked down at his apprentice, who once thought they were rivals and teammates, but now Sasuke was angry because he didn't know what he was because of the person he always hated. He thought it was weird seeing Naruto and Sasuke arrive together when they reached the bridge, and they were late by an hour and a half, but both were acting like normal so he didn't notice it either. Again. "What happened, Sasuke? What's going on with these questions?"

"Just answer me."

"No, I don't know much about Naruto and I don't know where he lives. I know he likes ramen and he doesn't like you..."

Sasuke snorted, interrupting Kakashi. "Shows what you know. Naruto doesn't like Ramen and he doesn't hate me. We're the same that way... but you do know when his birthday is, right? "

_The same_? Kakashi frowned, Naruto didn't like Ramen? And Sasuke knows when Naruto's birthday is? He wasn't sure what was going on, but he answered hesitantly to control his anger and pressure from Sasuke and answered. "Uhm ..."

"So why did you ignore it?" He shouted,

"Why not tell us that? We've known him for 5 years now and I'm just now finding out? "

Kakashi had the same feeling as Sasuke but he manipulated it in a different way. While Sasuke was always dissatisfied and cold, Kakashi was bored and cheerful. But the genius boy's words angered Kakashi and the teacher responded with the same anger. "So, did you notice how upset he was during this time, Sasuke?" The reason we never celebrate his birthday is because he always disappears on his birthday! I didn't know where he was, even Iruka doesn't know where he goes. I don't know where he lives because only Iruka knows and Naruto told him not to tell anyone. I think you're smart enough to understand why he doesn't want anyone to know his whereabouts!" He shouted, "Besides, what did you do on those days? Practicing alone on those days and not caring about anyone else besides you. Nobody notices Naruto not around here on his most important day and Konoha's day, but if you know his birthday you must know why he's always running away. "

Sasuke looked down, silent. He had never thought about why Naruto was absent from the village on his birthday, but now he knew. This festival was to commemorate the victory of the fox and thus the hatred for Naruto on this day would be higher than normal. "... I just don't understand why we never knew that. That Naruto isn't him Kakashi-sensei, I met him today. He was so sad ... I've never seen him so sad. "

"Sasuke," he said, putting his hand on his shoulder. "Each of us wears a mask, it's just Naruto's mask. His just looks more real than other people, it's so real that we don't even know what happened to him in the past. "

Sasuke was silent again, he knew that his mask was starting to fall off. He was talking too much and hesitating. He had never spoken that much or expressed his emotions before, never. He is an Uchiha. He was never allowed to show sympathy or have anything other than anger and rage. But ... when he looked at the blonde, he did not feel anger or hatred, all of them seemed to have disappeared.

"You just want to see his smile, right?" Kakashi said softly.

He nodded slowly, looking at the blonde boy now whining to Sakura. "I want him to be happy ..."

"Then let's do it ..." Sasuke froze, but Kakashi continued "Remove your mask and make him laugh..."

"But..."

"Sasuke, he needs you. You are his only friend. I think you know this now. He always considered you a friend even though you never realized it. You're the only one who can make him less alert around you and the only person he can trust. He doesn't trust me or even the Hokage like he trusts you. "

" Kakashi-sensei… what happened to him?"

"What do you mean?"

"Something happened to him that he didn't want to talk about." He behaves strangely, he doesn't want anyone to touch or approach him ... why? "

"Naruto will have to be the one to tell you that. Because I don't know the whole reason for it..."

He didn't say anything more but nodded and approached his two teammates. Naruto was excitedly speaking to Sakura about something he saw and was trying to borrow her money to play games. Sasuke smiled. Naruto looked cute when he pouted.

Kakashi shook his head, muttering, "Young people." He looked around again before crawling into a bookstore, where a new story was waiting for him to buy.

Sasuke shoved his hand into his pocket and ignored a Sakura clinging to his arm. He looked at Naruto and saw a fleeting glare of disappointment when Sakura left him, but he hid it quickly with a grin.

"Sasuke-kun! I'm glad you came back. I'm about to beat Naruto up, he's so annoying. "

" Sakura-chan…" Naruto lamented, but the hidden pain appeared in his eyes.

Sasuke snatched his hand away from Sakura and turned to smile at Naruto. "Who's ready to go to lunch? It's about noon now. "

"Ramen?" The blonde asked hopefully.

"No. Ramen is no lunch for your birthday." He smiled and started walking towards the other restaurants and stopped at a place where Chicken Curry rice was being served. Naruto yelled, causing Sakura to smack him on the back of the head, pretending he was feeling uncomfortable because he had to eat anything other than Ramen. But Sasuke saw the thanks in the silence he sent him.

Sakura finally realized the implications of Sasuke's words as she came to sit between the two of them and turned to ask Naruto, "Is your birthday today? "

He nodded quickly, but inside was now very worried, afraid that she would recognize the link between it and the festival. "Yup! I'm 17. "

"Why didn't you tell me? I could have gotten something for you. "

"Really, Sakura-chan? You would do that?" His eyes brightened and a happy smile spread on his lips as he continued to eat his curry.

"Of course!" She looked like she was thinking of something and turned to Sasuke. "How did you know?"

Sasuke just shrugged, he didn't care about Sakura's curiosity, he wouldn't tell her what happened. What happened between him and the blonde boy was their own secret and Sasuke didn't want to share it with anyone. Anyway, he and Naruto are rivals in everyone's eyes and things like talking to each other only bring nonsense rumors and incessant questions, people will look at them in an unusual way. Damn, this is strange. He had never thought that he could comfort Dobe, the energetic blond boy he had seen as a friend.

Although Sasuke's eyes were always cold and emotionless, as well as his face, but he was smiling silently inside when he saw the blonde boy ordering a third bowl. Sakura scowled and told him to shut up while going back to her bowl. Naruto shrugged and began to eat his new curry bowl as if it were ramen, not bothering to chew.

Sasuke paid for their meal, a total of 16 bowls for all three then slowly walked up the main street of the Festival. Juggling performers, acrobatics, ninja and their domesticated animals were performing at the heart of the Festival creating spectacular and fascinating performances, the sights and sounds mixing together to create a colorful picture.

Today was quite quiet, only soothing music and whispering conversations could be heard as the trio walked among the crowds. Sasuke could not help but see the cold looks, the stumbling feet or the shoving as they passed through the crowd. But Naruto didn't do anything, he just smiled and apologized for his awkwardness. The genius boy was confused, he knew how strong Naruto was and he had never seen him let anyone treat him that way at school. But now he silently accepted the treatment of everyone in the village. It caused anger in Sasuke's heart, both about Naruto's attitude and the hatred of everyone for him. He tried to control his anger, keeping his face and eyes expressionless.

The three walked around the Festival, occasionally stopping to play games or talk to some friends, or watch fireworks being shot into the sky in the dark. Even Sasuke took part in several games, winning several times with Naruto and Sakura, but Naruto didn't play games at some of the booths. When Sasuke asked why, the blonde boy just shrugged and said that he wasn't good at playing this or something like that. However, the young boy seemed to have enjoyed a real birthday and Sasuke didn't push him anymore.

The night had finally fallen. Sasuke stopped at a game stall and smiled at Naruto, knowing that this was a game the blonde boy couldn't ignore. Kunai throwing competition. He paid for the six Kunai and raised an eyebrow at the blonde. "Do you think you can beat me, Dobe?" "

Naruto immediately responded out of habit and grabbed the Kunai from Sasuke. "Shut up, Teme! Look, I'll beat you." He immediately threw a Kunai at the target, aiming at the center of the target, which surprised everyone except Sasuke.

Sasuke laughed and threw another one, aiming for the heart of the target. "You can do better than this." He poked.

The blonde boy just grinned and started to take another Kunai but at that moment he suddenly felt his hand pinned to the counter. Sasuke heard Naruto call his name and took action, throwing away all the Kunai he held in his hand. Naruto's hand throbbed and he screamed, trembling with pain all over his hands and arms. He cried when the man twisted the Kunai stabbed through his hand, ripped the muscle fibers and broke the bones. Naruto started sobbing, his body twitching as his hand was pinned once more to the stall and the man continued to twist it vigorously.

Sasuke at first did not know what was going on, but when the blonde boy started screaming out of fear and pain, he immediately returned to the present, took out a Kunai and threw it at the man. "Get away from him now! Sasuke yelled, but the man only pulled the Kunai off his shoulders and slashed it at Naruto's chest as he stood still and held his motionless arm.

"Why aren't you dead, monster?" The man roared, pointing his hand down. "You should have died already. We took care of you yesterday." Naruto cringed, waiting for the blows to come, but that didn't happen. Blood continued to flow down from his arms and chest and he felt so much pain that he couldn't see anything anymore. However, he could still hear.

"I told you to stay away from him right now!" Someone shouted, it was Sasuke. He had caught the man's fist and was now twisting it hard. He wanted him to experience the same pain Naruto suffered.

"You wouldn't say that if you knew what it was." The man argued but withdrew his hand from the Kunai and lowered his other hand.

"I know all about him and I'll say it again." His voice was cold and dangerous. "You get away from him immediately or I'll cut your throat."

"You won't do that, you're a Ninja and you're here to protect the village. You won't hurt your people."

He squeezed the man's wrist. "Do you want to try me? "

"Sas...uke...Sasuke." Naruto whispered, he pulled Kunai out of his hand and was shaking his head weakly. "Forget it, it's nothing. I'm fine. "

"Nothing is all right!" Sasuke shouted, "How can you stand there and not do anything?" "

"Because, if I do anything, it will only make things worse." He said, tears streaming down his face. "I'm fine, look at this. My skin has healed already." He raised his hand, indicating that the blood had stopped flowing but the lacerations were still open and his chest was still bleeding.

Suddenly, the blonde boy fell on Sasuke when the other villagers attacked with a hard blow to his head. Naruto screamed as he slid onto the ground, falling in the indifference of those around him. Sasuke turned and saw an elderly woman standing behind him with a cane in one hand and a Kunai in the other. "Don't cover for _that_."

"Stay away from him!" He roared, kicking the man away and standing in front to protect Naruto. When he approached, Sasuke could hear sobs in the silence and saw blood dripping from the wound in his chest. But the blood flowing from his neck made him feel more worried than a chest wound. Sakura knelt beside Naruto and placed her hand on his back, but Naruto trembled and she pulled her hand away.

Shikamaru, Ino, Kiba and Neji appeared beside Sasuke, the five of them stood around Naruto and Sakura and protected them from the villagers. Hinata, Lee, Choji and Tenten were standing close by, ready to rush in from behind if the villagers intended to continue to attack Naruto. Their weapons were ready, and something was thrown to warn the crowd. Sasuke had the most menacing look on his face and kunai in his hands and the dark look on his face indicated that his sharingan was activated.

A man in black and gray suddenly jumped down from the roof of the stall. His hands hung lazily beside him, but the cold gaze from those eyes made people shudder. "Is there something going on here?" The teacher asked. "I believe Sasuke has said this already, but I feel like some people need to hear it again. _Stay away from him!" _The teacher 's voice was dark, and his gaze glanced at the woman who struck Naruto. "If someone hurts one of the people I'm in charge of, he or she will have to accept not only my wrath, but also the Hokage's."

Anger and disgust appeared in their eyes. The crowd was ominous, but the anger emanating from the students and the teachers made them gradually back away, threats and curses were dispelled. Sasuke immediately turned to Naruto's injured body and knelt beside him, supporting the boy against his chest. Blood continued to flow from his chest and even the wounds on his head were bleeding a lot, forming a pool of blood below him. "Naruto. Naruto, are you okay?"

Sakura looked at him. "Sasuke-kun, does it hurt? Did they hurt you anywhere? "

"Where the hell have you been? Naruto was lying there almost unconscious due to blood loss and you're asking me?" He shouted, "Everyone else risked their lives and careers to protect Naruto while you kneeled next to him and just look at him? I don't know what you are doing, Sakura, but I don't want to see you unless you're really worried about Naruto." Sasuke then picked up the bleeding blonde, glanced over his shoulder at Kakashi and headed towards the hospital with Shikamaru accompanying him.

"Sasuke." The Jounin shouted after him. "Don't go to the hospital, they won't help him there. Take Naruto to Tsunade, she'll treat him. I will tell her you're coming." He said, knowing that Sasuke would not let him go. "Shikamaru, control the crowd. I know they're still angry." Shikamaru hesitated but nodded his head and looked once more towards Sasuke and Naruto before turning around and standing beside Ino and Kiba, ordering them to track down the two who attacked Naruto and the others who helped them. He then ordered the rest to help control the crowd.

Sasuke hugged Naruto tightly, clutching his shoulders and knees but still being careful not to hurt Naruto and jumping from one roof to another to reach the Hokage tower. He was very careful not to bump Naruto, but every time he touched the roof, the nearly unconscious boy cried out in pain. Sasuke didn't understand why Naruto was hurting so much, he knew that his head and chest were injured but he had never seen him react like that. The blood from Naruto's chest wound was beginning to flow down Sasuke's arm while the blood from the head wound wet his shirt and dripped down his stomach.

He arrived at Tsunade's office a few minutes later and saw Kakashi and Tsunade waiting for them with anxiety. He hesitated to hand Naruto to Tsunade, not wanting to leave the blonde, but he knew he had to if he wanted him to live. "He-he kept screaming in pain every time I touched the ground and I don't know why, but his wounds aren't healing! He told me that he's fine and that the wounds are healing, but why are they not healing?" Sasuke almost went crazy in panic, not worrying about whether the two of them to saw how crazy he was. "What happened to him?"

Tsunade looked at Kakashi. "He knows?" When the silver-haired Jounin nodded, she looked at Sasuke and said. "His wounds aren't healing because the Kyuubi had used all of his chakra to treat him yesterday."

"Yesterday?"

"This is nothing compared to yesterday, Sasuke. Thankfully Kakashi found him yesterday..." She said, slowly removing Naruto's shirt with a pair of scissors, being careful not to touch the wound. "Yesterday I sent Kakashi for reconnaissance as usual. I'm sure you still remember that you were off that day." When Sasuke nodded, she resumed in a soft and sad voice. "Kakashi stopped at the village gate after reporting that he sensed a large amount of chakra being emmited not far from where he stood, but it was being released at a surprising speed. After being allowed to patrol the area Kakashi found Naruto two miles outside of Konoha village, covered with bloody cuts and other wounds. Naruto breathed heavily, but the Kyuubi healed most of his wounds. I really don't want to know what he looked like before Kakashi got there." Tsunade shuddered as she wiped the deep chest wound extending from his shoulders to his chest. "When Kakashi approached him, Naruto screamed in pain and even though Kakashi had calmed him down, he was still hesitant to all contact. When…" Tsunade stopped again, stroked her hand over his hair and then started wiping her own brown. "When Kakashi asked him what happened, Naruto just whispered. 'It was my early birthday present' and then handed the control over to the Kyuubi."

"What ... is he?" Sasuke gasped in surprise.

Kakashi nodded and continued to protect Tsunade so that she could start using Jutsu to treat Naruto's wounds. "That damn fox made him scared to death, so he almost dropped Naruto, but he promised to give back control once Naruto was fully awake. He said that Naruto's spirit is currently too weak and depressed, badly damaged, and he doesn't know how to recover. When the teacher asked what had happened, he replied reluctantly, saying that it was Naruto's problem and he would tell us when he wanted to. But he's told you most of what happened." Kakashi looked at Tsunade, knowing that it was not wise to continue the story by bothering Tsunade when she was trying to concentrate on saving Naruto's life. Having to listen to this again just hurt her and made her lose focus. It made Kakashi seem to be torn to pieces every time he recalled what the Kyuubi had told him, and up to now it was his fifth time. "Sasuke, come over here and let Hokage-sama continue her work." He just nodded silently, trying to understand everything his teacher was saying.

Naruto handed the control back to the Kyuubi, Naruto handed the control back to the Kyuubi, Naruto handed the control over to the Kyuubi ... He couldn't stop repeating that. Naruto never gave control to anyone, but he suddenly handed it over to a monster who attacked villagers and destroyed many families and half of their villages. Dobe only did it when his stress was so high that he was mentally disturbed, but he knew what the blonde had to go through every day and what made him want to give up his rights and control must have meant something terrible happened.

"Sasuke," Kakashi said, his voice soft but serious. "Nobody knows this except me, Iruka-sensei and Tsunade-sama, do you understand?"

"I won't say anything." He answered honestly.

He nodded. "The Kyuubi said that 4 Anbu attacked Naruto two nights ago. Naruto was practicing at the edge of the forest when they ambushed him and dragged him into the forest. He was tired so when they beat him there was no strength left to fight ... they took him two miles from the village, dragged him on grass, rocks and streams, and finally they started to torture him. "

"They tortured him!?" Sasuke screamed, his hands clenched so tightly that his nails were digging into his palms.

"Yes Sasuke, they tortured him." Kakashi's voice cracked as he thought about what his small apprentice and fellow teammate had to endure. "The Kyuubi said that he was stabbed seventeen times at that time, his stomach was torn up and someone cut into his gut. The bloodstain on Naruto's neck told him that they had tried cutting his throat, but the Kyuubi said that they broke Naruto's neck by stabbing through his throat." He paused. " Both arms were broken, seven fingers, someone stabbed a deep wound in his thigh and shoulder. It seemed that the only place they didn't touch was his heart ... but the Kyuubi said that there were many injuries inside, even though it didn't say how or why. The Kyuubi used all his chakra reserves just to keep Naruto alive.

"It was awful, Sasuke. There was so much blood ... I have never seen so much blood coming from a person, let alone a 17-year-old!" Kakashi whispered, his voice trembling as if trying to hold back his tears. Sasuke had never seen his teacher like that, with all the pain and sadness. "When Naruto didn't show up this morning at the bridge. I thought it was because his birthday had arrived and he wanted to stay away from the villagers before anything happened. Damned! If the teachers were only an hour later or...Naruto may be dead. I should have known he would never skip a day unless something happened. Damn!" His self-hatred could be heard clearly in his voice. "Naruto is always there, even though yesterday was just a meaningless meeting. He would be there, but I didn't think anything of it. I just thought that he wanted to get away from this place ... even Iruka didn't think there was anything wrong. So he agreed not to find him that night. We have gotten so used to Naruto disappearing for the past 6 years that we n-never ... never imagined that some people would want to kill him that much."

Sasuke remained silent and did not move. He never thought that this could happen, he didn't know that the villagers hated him so much that they wanted to kill him. Kakashi stopped to breathe, and restrained the anger rising in his chest and then looked down at Sasuke. Sasuke was still silent and there was no expression on his face, but anger burned in his eyes. "Kyuubi ..." He continued. "The Kyuubi said it had ceaselessly healed Naruto for 2 hours when the four Jounin tortured him. It ended up having to let them do what they wanted until they left. Only then could it continue to heal the dangerous wounds to keep him alive. Only when they thought Naruto was dead did they return to Konoha, leaving Naruto in the cold, pain, blood loss, weakness and dying. The Kyuubi worked all day and night to treat him, but even with the large amount of chakra stored, it couldn't heal them all. It said that with how bad they had beaten him that without Tsunade's help, even the Kyuubi had no way to save Naruto. But…" He continued to pause, lowering his voice more than before. "But that fox said that Naruto was not yet completely healed."

"That means his psychological state, right?" Sasuke asked, afraid waiting for an answer.

"Yes, the Kyuubi said that Naruto would be very weak and even if he knew he could return control today, even though he knew Naruto would act like nothing happened while he tried. Enduring inside. I don't know exactly what happened, but from what the Kyuubi said, Naruto is a very vulnerable person at the moment."

Sasuke looked at the ground and leaning against the wall. "How can he endure all that? How could he do that? "

" Because Naruto is that strong."

"No, he's not strong Kakashi-sensei, he's not strong at all. He's just hiding it ... how long has this been going on? How long has he suffered in silence? "

"Longer than we know." Tsunade said from behind the door. The two turned to look at Tsunade, surprised by her appearance. Her cloak was covered with blood, her face and hair were sweaty, and she was breathing tiredly. "I spent too much chakra in a short time. These Jutsu have taken most of my chakra and in two days in a row so I can only heal simple wounds now."

"But Naruto will… will he recover?" Sasuke stammered.

"Oh, he will be fine. It's a little tiring in the coming days but I'm worried there will be more attacks in the coming days. "Tsunade said, knowing that neither she nor the Kyuubi could do anything to save Naruto if he was attacked in public in the coming days. "Kakashi, Sasuke, you two are responsible for protecting Naruto from now on. I want you two to be with him all the time until we catch the Jounin who tried to kill him and the man who injured him tonight."

Kakashi placed his hand on Tsunade's shoulder. "Thank you, Tsunade-sama. Thank you. Now you go get some rest, we will look after him. You need a break if you want to continue performing the Hokage's work. "

Tsunade nodded, knowing that he was right and that she was too exhausted to argue. She slowly walked to her room and collapsed on the bed, sleeping for a whole day.

Two days have passed, and Naruto has not regained consciousness. Sasuke and Kakashi are with him most of the day, sharing shifts every twelve hours and only leaving when they need to go to the toilet or eat. They spend seven hours a day talking to each other, Kakashi guarding the night because he is more experienced in operating in the shadows and more experienced in general than Sasuke. At night Naruto's chances of being attacked were higher than those of daytime and it was wise to leave the silver haired Jounin guarding the night hours.

Tsunade visits every day, checking Naruto's health and his coma. She told them sadly that the trauma a few days ago was too much for him to endure and he put himself into a coma. She tried contacting his mind several times using different types of Jutsu, but nothing happened. There was no reaction or recognition from the blonde, only silence.

The villagers don't know much about what happened, but they all know Naruto is at Hokage's side and protected by Sasuke and Kakashi. Iruka was the only person allowed to visit Naruto, not even Sakura was allowed to visit him. Although most of the cause was because of Sasuke rather than Tsunade, he threatened and warned the guards that if Sakura was to be allowed in, she would be forced to leave by the window. Kakashi also agreed after thinking about it, Sakura deserved to be rejected for her actions that night. She made it all too clear that she just wanted to see Sasuke and Naruto didn't matter to her.

Iruka came to visit every day, immediately after the end of class and stayed until eleven o'clock in the evening before returning home and continued the next day. Every day Kakashi had to take Iruka out and comfort the Chounin when he cried. They stayed there for a few minutes or hours, but every day continued like that.

**END OF CHAPTER**


	3. Chapter 3

*NOTE* This is not in any way an original work, this is a reverse translation and repost of the work of 'dhampir'. The story was translated into Vietnamese and in an attempt to translate it back to English I am doing my best to honor the original language of the story but in no way am knowingly changing any plot points from the original fanwork.

Six days had passed and there was still no sign that Naruto would wake up. Kakashi continued outside with Iruka and Sasuke sitting in the chair next to Naruto. He was staring intently at the blonde when he saw Naruto's face cramped in pain and heard soft moans escaping from his lips. Naruto's body began to tremble in fear and slowly his fingers clung to the sheets, he clung tighter and tighter until his knuckles became white.

"Naruto?" Sasuke whispered, slowly getting closer to the blonde. As he got closer, he could see blonde hair soaked in sweat and tears streaming down Naruto's face. His body trembled and moans began to grow with fear. Sasuke hesitantly touched Naruto's hand. "Naruto, what happened?" His voice was soft and gentle. Under the touch of his hand, the trembling subsided but he continued to moan. "What the hell is going on with you, Dobe?" He said softly and took his hand into his own. The nails dug into his hand and he winced as blood dripped onto the bed. Sasuke was surprised to feel the cold and damp from Naruto's hand, this was the first time he touched him in the past week.

When Naruto's groans were relentless and the blonde boy's body started shaking, he screamed. Sasuke scratched his head with his free hand, all the chaos in his head, and he began to sigh uncomfortably as the blonde continued to shake harder. "Damn it, Naruto! You're hurting yourself!" He shouted and was forced to hold the blonde before he hurt himself.

Sasuke slid into the bed and pulled Naruto towards him, holding the blonde's head with one hand while his other hand continued to hold his hand. Unconsciously, he patted Naruto on the head and tried to whisper to comfort him, the two of them continued to sit together without any discomfort or insults. Gradually, Naruto's groans and trembling lessened and Sasuke became silent again. He began to bend down to watch the serenity appear on Naruto's face and let out a satisfied sigh for a moment. When he started to slide out of the bed, the hand he was gripping tightened.

Then Naruto's eyes opened, but they weren't his eyes. They still had a warm blue color and full of vitality, but the pupils were smaller than before. "Keep talking to him!" That voice was not his, it was deeper, sounding like the voice of an animal behind Naruto's voice.

"Kyuubi? Sasuke said softly, motionless.  
He nodded slightly. "The boy is remembering bad memories and he cannot escape from them. However, your voice calmed him down and his memories faded. Continue talking to him. "

Sasuke nodded.

"Do you mind if he is near you? I'm trying my best, but he needs to be safe and I think you're the only one who can calm him down. "

Sasuke continued to nod, lying back beside Naruto and pulling him close.

"He will be very happy ... about this ..." Kyuubi whispered, returning control to Naruto again, leaving space for the two of them and returning to the hidden place in his mind. At that moment, Naruto's body began to snuggle and nestle closer to him. The hand that was gripping Sasuke's hand let go and instead clutching his shirt, Naruto's legs tightened and his knees touched Sasuke's thighs, Naruto's head was now resting on his neck, and the other hand came around his waist and pulled his body closer to him.

Sasuke smiled. "Dobe." He snorted as the blood from the arm wound ran down his stomach, and he started humming a song. He comfortably continued to lean his head against the wall and sing softly, which was the song his mother once sang. He didn't really enjoy being so close to the blonde boy, he didn't want to show too much emotion or anxiety, but he didn't want Naruto hurting himself either.

Kakashi walked in with Iruka and froze when he saw Naruto in Sasuke's arms. He smiled and looked at Iruka - who was also gaping at them. Sasuke just looked at the two for a bit and then hummed again when Kakashi and Iruka came and sat down next to them. After he finished singing the fourth verse and Naruto's breath was deep and slow, Sasuke stopped and looked towards the two teachers. He sighed in a relaxed manner, changing his posture more comfortably and Sasuke told them everything Kyuubi had told him.

"So, the fox seems to care for Naruto." Kakashi said thoughtfully

Sasuke nodded. "He said he was trying to persuade Naruto, but he could only do so much..."

"But Naruto has already moved." Iruka said, "Maybe Naruto is starting to come out of a coma."

"We can only hope." Kakashi whispered. "We can only hope."

After Iruka left, Kakashi returned to his usual position to protect his two students all night. He had arranged for Sakura to move to a different team, but it was only temporary, though he wasn't sure his team could return to what it was before. Actually, all three had become Chounin, and were on their way to becoming elite Jounin, but they continued to work together under Kakashi's training. All the assignments that had been given were group activities and the Hokage began assigning lower Jounin classes to the Chounin group believing they would do well and could help the Jounin look after and teach the Chounin and new shinobi.

As such, Sakura will be on the same team as Shikamaru, Choji and Ino under the guidance of a Jounin that Kakashi does not know. It was a little weird that there were 5 members in a team even though he knew that Shikamaru would soon take part in the Jounin examination and it was very likely that he would be assigned to his former team as the person who will train them. He sighed, remembering his former team and Naruto's antics and looked in the direction of the two boys. Sasuke was asleep too, his face looking more serene than before with Naruto still in his arms. Kakashi stood up and covered the boys with blankets before returning to his position by the window. Sasuke looked at his teacher with sleepy eyes and pulled up the blanket again before returning to sleep, mumbling quietly "Thank you."

Kakashi smiled and then began to look out the window. He was no longer reading books when he was with Naruto, something he had always done before. He did not want to enjoy his former pleasures when one of his students was motionless lying on the hospital bed. He didn't want to ask Sasuke why he was crawling into Naruto's bed in the first place like he first saw when he walked into the room, but even if he asked, Kakashi knew that he would only receive glances without answer. He suspected that Sasuke knew why.

He continued to sigh, peering at the two boys and then turned to look out the window. He knew the attack would happen sooner or later, maybe not tonight but soon. Now that he was relaxed, the immediate danger filled everywhere and Kakashi knew that the time of the attack was near. If he was the one who led the raid on Naruto, he would have attacked yesterday when things were just starting to quiet because he knew that most Shinobi thought that this time was too early to act. To attack after today would only make people more alert because everything has been quiet for so long.

The door opened and a man dressed in black entered. Kakashi immediately threw the Kunai unhesitatingly, killing the man before he took another step closer to Naruto. Kakashi slowly stood up, opened both eyes and looked around. "Yo! I was surprised to see you wait to attack until now, you guys made me wait."

Another man entered the room while the other two followed behind him. Kakashi watched them carefully, though his face showed boredom instead of worry. He stood in front of Naruto's bed, hiding the boys as he drew two more Kunai from the edge of the bed. He anticipated that Sasuke had woken up and didn't bother moving as a Kunai flew past him. A second later they both successfully injured two of the men before they had time to react. Kakashi had to admit, Sasuke had started to become a great ninja and could even be compared to an experienced Jounin like his teacher now.

Sasuke appeared at Kakashi's side, shuriken and kunai at the ready. His eyes were blood red with his sharingan. He heard Naruto moan softly as he lost his warmth, and he took a quick glance at the blonde boy. Naruto was fumbling to find Sasuke, his hand searched but not finding anything and the blonde boy's body began to tremble again.

Sasuke had left Naruto's side when he heard Kakashi's voice and was immediately ready to attack by his teacher's side. He would not let anyone touch Naruto. The three men looked at the teachers and students nervously and moved carefully under their observation. Kakashi didn't like the way these guys moved, he expected the shinobi to be better than the ones present, but right now they were the top concern and he was forced to focus on them.

"Sasuke," Kakashi said, flicking the Kunai in his hand. "Two or one? "

"Hn." He replied softly before the two men began to attack, separating them in two directions. Sasuke focused on the guy in the room while Kakashi aimed for the other two and pushed them out into the corridor. Sasuke watched the man in front of him carefully, noticing the difference in level between them. This man was a trained anbu and even though he had reached the level of a Jounin, Sasuke was still lacking experience and that was a problem.

In the darkness of the room, Sasuke could only see the metallic gleam of weapons to be able to block it, but the next time he attacked he was forced to step back to avoid. A long wound cut across his biceps and he cursed under his breath as the man passed him and started aiming at Naruto.

He had only just reached the bed when Sasuke grabbed him and pushed him against the wall. "No." Before the man could do anything, he noticed a Kunai close to his throat and the other between his legs, both threatening to stab into his body. "Don't touch him."

"Why do you need to protect _that_? It's best to kill that brat right now before he continues to harm people."

"And if you continue to look at him like that, I'll kill you." Sasuke roared, continuing to press the two Kunai against the man causing blood to drip down his neck. The man stopped resisting and looked at the door, understanding that the match was over. He couldn't move before Sasuke slit his neck or cut a vein in his groin, both synonymous with death. He could only hope his comrades came to his rescue while Sasuke thought otherwise.

And the match in the corridor ended as soon as it started. Kakashi was furious, angry, overwhelmed, and the teacher was making them pay for what was done to Naruto. He dodged attacks easily while slowly slashing them. After each cut, the attackers faltered and cursed, but Kakashi wanted to see them suffer before they died, and the teacher did so. The cuts were deep, and the teacher slowly broke their bones like they did to Naruto. He know these men were responsible for Naruto's current situation. They almost confessed it right away, laughing when they saw Naruto crying and screaming like a child.

Their hands were broken first, then their knees, then their arms and then their necks. It was all like what the Kyuubi said Naruto had to go through. But unlike Naruto, the two died immediately after the last fracture, they wouldn't last long with the veins cut and the neck was torn up, they couldn't move or do anything else. Only lie there waiting to die.

Kakashi sighed as he watched the life blood from the two Ninjas flow into a pool around them. He snorted in disgust before returning to Naruto's room. He grabbed the man from Sasuke's arm and immediately dealt him a heavy blow, punching him in the stomach. The man bent down, coughed up blood and immediately lost consciousness. Kakashi picked him up, tossed the limp body over his shoulder, and started walking down the corridor again.

"We're going to visit Hokage-sama, Sasuke. And then we'll have a nice long talk. Keep me posted."

He nodded, knowing that his job now was to watch Naruto while Kakashi interrogated the man to spit out everything that had happened. He retrieved his weapon and returned to his teammate. Naruto curled up like a ball, tears were quietly flowing down his face and his body was trembling harder than before.

"Kuso!" Sasuke immediately slid into the bed, pulling Naruto's trembling body on top of him, stroking his hair gently while his other hand massaged his back. Feeling the warmth of another, Naruto instinctively wrapped his arms around Sasuke's waist and pulled him closer, but his tears kept on falling. During the two weeks he spent lying on Naruto's bed, Sasuke had shown his tenderness, but only in front of Naruto and no one else. "Hush... hush... I'm sorry, Naruto. I'm right here. I won't leave you like before, okay?" He said, gently rocking the small body forward. This was the twelfth time he had done this, and he knew exactly what to do. "Everything will be better now. I promise you that. Even if I have to become a missing-nin again in order to give you a life worth living, I would do it. I promise you that one day you will live in a place where people care about you and no one wants to hurt you. The place where the Kyuubi doesn't matter ... where you don't have to live a lie ... "


	4. Chapter 4

*NOTE* This is not in any way an original work, this is a reverse translation and repost of the work of 'dhampir'. The story was translated into Vietnamese and in an attempt to translate it back to English I am doing my best to honor the original language of the story but in no way am knowingly changing any plot points from the original fan work.

So warm!

He had never felt so warm before in his life. Not even when he covered himself in a blanket and sat next to the warm fire, but that didn't feel like he did now. A gentle hand stroked his back and he could feel a gentle breath brushing his face. He gingerly lifted his head and pressed it against the chest he was leaning on and he could clearly hear the steady thumping of the heartbeat and it started to lull him into sleep once more. His hands were wrapped around that warm waist and felt a hand on his arm, those warm hands were still very soft despite the calluses.

The slow strokes continued, and Naruto found himself unwilling to wake up. Not because he didn't want to see the villagers' disdain and their insults, nor because he didn't want to continue being a ninja anymore, but because this was the first time he felt loved. He felt that if only someone truly loved him despite his being a monster and the current state of turmoil. Instinctively he tightened his arms around that warm body and felt a giggle from the body. The hand on his back drew him closer and then began to continue caressing his back absently.

Naruto knew that he couldn't pretend to sleep any more, he wanted to know who was next to him, comforting him and letting him hug him like this. The laugh from that person told him that it was a man, it was too deep for a woman's voice and Naruto felt more fortunate because it was a man instead of a woman. A woman would never have the strength to protect him as a man could, oh it's true that there are a lot of experienced professional shinobi women, but they lack the strong body of a man and That's what Naruto needs most right now. He needed to be held tightly in a strong embrace, and he needed that strength to be able to keep his happy face, even though he felt completely exhausted and tired of it.  
He opened his eyes slowly and at first everything was blurry and he couldn't focus on anything because the sunlight was so intense and his head felt heavy. He blinked a few more times, still not moving in case all he had felt was a dream and he didn't want that dream to end. It was the best dream he had ever had. His dreams were always filled with images of shadows, they surround him and beat him while calling him a devil, monster, murderer and other names.

He remained in that position until he was able to concentrate on looking at the wall as he looked over the chest he was leaning on. He frowned. It was too quiet compared to his dreams and no one was lurking around to attack him. The wall was white and empty and strange that it looked like a hospital wall, but he didn't remember being hospitalized. He frowned again and glanced down at the dark blue fabric beneath his head and then returned to the wall. That warmth was still there, that body was still here, and he was beginning to believe that this really wasn't a dream.

He hesitated to look up, still only moving eyes. And began to look closely at the contours of his face with pale skin and dark hair. Sasuke's eyes were closed and a small smile formed on his lips as he continued stroking Naruto's back. "Sasuke ..."

\- -

It had been almost a month and a half since Naruto fell into a coma and Sasuke started to feel nervous. More than he would care to admit. He began to believe that Naruto would never wake up again and that weighed on his mind. He still thought that if he had been paying more attention to the blonde and not being so cold-hearted, he would have seen it beforehand. He could have prevented this if he had cared.

As the days progressed, Sasuke couldn't leave the blonde without him shivering and crying. Tsunade stated that Naruto was still in a coma, but now he was beginning to show signs of regaining consciousness, but very slowly. She was surprised to hear what the Kyuubi had told Sasuke and also felt relieved to see Sasuke still alive. From what Kakashi said, the fox had special feelings for Naruto, and she believed that the fox was ready to attack Sasuke for all the suffering and insults he had caused Naruto. Instead, the fox spoke politely to the genius boy and told him to continue talking to Naruto, to reassure him.

Sasuke stayed with Naruto most of the day, eating in the room and only leaving when he needed to take a shower and go to the toilet, but even the short times he left the blonde boy alone he would immediately begin to tremble and cry in silence. Even Iruka and Kakashi could not calm the boy down and stop crying. Sasuke now sleeps with Naruto every night, regardless of whether the blonde boy's arm is wrapped around his waist or his head is on his chest. Sometimes he wraps his arms around Naruto's shoulders or his chest when he sleeps and will wake up the next morning with Naruto still sleeping on his stomach.

It was getting dark and Sasuke was sitting on Naruto's bed resting his head on the pillow while Naruto was fast asleep. After Sasuke got into bed, Naruto's hands immediately wrapped around his waist and he rested his head on Sasuke's chest, just a little below the neck bone. He sighed, a small smile formed on his lips, and he pushed the blond hair aside to reveal his face. For the past month and a half since Naruto showed signs of regaining consciousness, his hair had grown to reach his eyes and Sasuke had made it a habit to throw it aside so he can look at Naruto's face, looking for any signs that Naruto was awake.

He closed his eyes and rested a little after a hot and stressful day. Hinata, Sakura, Ino, Kiba, Lee and Shikamaru all tried to visit Naruto. Although Ino and Sakura and a bunch of other unknown girls had arrived, it was to find Sasuke and not Naruto. It took him nearly twenty minutes to tell them to leave and that no one was allowed to see Naruto without Tsunade's permission before coming here. However, Sakura, Ino and Kiba and even the other girls remained. Kiba and Sakura were the only ones who really wanted to see Naruto while the girls continue to ask Sasuke how and when he would return to the village. They all knew that Sasuke was with Naruto, although most of them believed that it was just because he was executing orders from Hokage and most of them were pitying him.

__ _**_Flash back _**_ ____

_Sasuke's patience gradually faded and he felt uncomfortable trying to persuade them to leave again. At that moment he heard screams and sobs from the inside of the room. "Shit"! He cursed under his breath as he rushed into the room, seeing Naruto curled up like a small ball, screaming loudly and sobbing. Sasuke didn't care about anyone looking at him, he took the blonde boy into his arms, placed him on his lap and started rocking him like his mom used to when he was a boy . "Hey...hey...I'm sorry for leaving you." Sasuke whispered reassuringly to him. "It's okay...it's okay!"___

_"Please stop...please...I didn't do anything..." Naruto moaned softly, gripping Sasuke's shirt tightly, his body trembling with fear and tears streaming down his face, soaking Sasuke's shirt. .___

_"Naruto, it's all right. They're not here anymore. You're safe." He continued, stroking Naruto's hair and his back as his free arm pulled his body closer to him. This was not the first time Naruto had talked in his sleep, it had been a week and Naruto had always begged someone to stop. The blonde boy seemed very reluctant to break out of his coma and although he was able to speak and move, he refused to wake up. ___

_"Naruto..." Sakura whispered by the door. The genius boy glared at the people gawking from the doorway with a look that scared them. He almost screamed, his body tensed with anger, but he kept his posture. He knew he couldn't leave Naruto again. It made him angry when the others dared to look at the two people with mixed emotions, half hate for Naruto and half poor Sasuke.___

_"Get out of here!" He clenched his teeth and ordered. Kiba was standing behind the others, but he was able to see Naruto's weak condition. He nodded to Sasuke before pushing the girls out and closing the door to the room and turned to smile at the two friends through the small window in the door before telling everyone to leave. ___

_Sasuke could hear mumbling and complaining on the other side of the door, but Kiba and his dog Akamaru stood in front of the door until they all left. He then opened the door to find Sasuke lying on the bed with the blonde boy lying down and Sasuke lying down next to him as usual. Kiba quietly entered the room but stayed near the door. ___

_"Can I come and visit him tomorrow?" Kiba asked hesitantly.___

_Sasuke bit his lip, but also nodded. Kiba helped stop the girls and he truly wanted to visit Naruto. "I will tell Hokage-sama." He said softly as he continued stroking Naruto's back gently as he did for the past month. ___

_"Thank you," he said, smiling before leaving. ___

__ _**_End Of Flash Back _**_ __

Sasuke continued to sigh, Tsunade was unhappy knowing that someone wanted to visit Naruto, but she also knew that Kiba would not harm Naruto so he was allowed to visit. Naruto also had friends, whether he believed it or not, and they care more about him than he knows. Kiba had left three hours ago and Naruto had stopped crying two hours ago and it made Sasuke feel less anxious. His shirt was soaked with Naruto's tears, but he wasn't angry about it, he was just worried. Naruto cried for two hours, at first just sobs before tears silently rolled down his face.

He giggled when he felt the blonde boy wrapped his arms tightly around his waist and pulled their bodies closer together. Naruto tightened his grip when he wanted to and Sasuke had some bruises on the places Naruto had embraced him, but he didn't mind them. He continued stroking the blonde boy's back when he heard some sounds and they pulled him out of his thoughts. A faint whisper, very small, but still audible, a whisper came from the boy beside him.

"Sasuke..."

**End Chapter Four**


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